The Spot Blog

DENVER—Last year's devastating fire season is prompting Colorado lawmakers to think about establishing a state firefighting fleet to supplement a fleet managed by the federal government.

Under a proposed measure, a new division would have the power to buy or lease firefighting aircraft.

The bill passed one Senate committee Thursday and now heads to another.

Last year, two people died in the Waldo Canyon Fire, which burned 346 homes and 28 square miles in Colorado Springs, and one died in the High Park Fire, which destroyed 136 square miles and 259 homes west of Fort Collins. The Lower North Fork Fire left three people dead.